The subject matter herein relates generally to connector assemblies, and more particularly, to connector assemblies mountable to a panel by front loading and rear loading operations.
Some electrical systems and devices today are designed to include ports along the panels or walls of an electrical system or device, such as a portable computer. The ports allow an operator of the system to establish a communication or transmission line to a peripheral device (e.g., an RF antenna, a wireless device, a wireless router, another system). In addition, the ports may allow the operator to establish a power connection for the system or the peripheral device. The system includes a connector assembly that holds contacts configured to mate with a mating connector that is coupled to the peripheral device. The connector assembly is typically mounted to either the front side, or the back side, of the panel using hardware, such as screws, clips, pins, and the like. However, the hardware used for mounting may increase the amount of time and cost to construct the system. Alternatively, when hardware is not used to attach the conventional receptacle to the panel, the receptacle may inadvertently disengage from the panel during normal use of the system.
In some known systems, the connector assembly is mounted to a panel having a cutout. Some known connector assemblies are front loaded into the cutout by loading the connector assembly directly through the cutout from the front of the panel. Other known connector assemblies are rear loaded into the cutout by loading a projection of the connector assembly through a notch in the cutout and then sliding the connector assembly in a direction parallel to the panel. The panel is typically captured between the projection at the front of the panel, and a corresponding projection of the connector assembly at a rear of the panel. Such connectors are referred to as slide-to-lock connectors. The front loaded connector assemblies are not configured to be rear loaded, and the rear loaded connector assemblies are not configured to be front loaded. As such, two different connector assemblies must be designed to accommodate different customers having different mounting requirements.
Thus, there is a need for a connector assembly that may be assembled in more than one way or using more than one type of loading operation. There is a need for a connector assembly that may be easier for a user to mount to a panel than conventional mountable connector assemblies.